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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- May 19, 2004 -- The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) announced that the Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) would receive $650,000 to provide technical leadership and program management to Mississippi State University (MSU) as it develops and improves high performance computing systems for the military. OSC will also receive $1.35 million to provide technical support in Signal Image Processing and Integrated Modeling and Test Environments.

The funds are part of an eight-year $108 million High Performance Computer Modernization Program (HPCMP) technology transfer contract that began in 2001 and includes five one-year options past the original three base years. The three-year base period expires May 31, 2004 and the first option year will run June 1, 2004 through May 31, 2005.

“The DoD PET program allows OSC and other Ohio institutions to participate in one of the key research programs in high performance computing supported by the federal government,” said Stan Ahalt, OSC Executive Director. “We are delighted to contribute to our national security programs through PET.”

The latest contract marks the ninth year that OSC has received funding for HPCMP. DoD has brought more than $10 million to OSC and other Ohio universities. The DoD contract will help support 11 professional staff and 14 interns throughout Ohio during the next year.

“This program mutually benefits DoD and the academic community. DoD gets access to the finest computational technologies developed by universities and industry, and academics get the opportunity to work on real-world applications for science and technology, ” says Dick Pritchard, OSC Director of Federal Programs.

Two major areas of OSC technical support in PET are Signal Image Processing (SIP) and Integrated Modeling and Test Environments (IMT). The SIP project extracts and analyzes real-time information from various sensor outputs including sonar, radar, visible and infrared images, signal intelligence, and navigation assets. This research has applications across a number of disciplines including intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance, avionics, communications, smart bombs, and electronic warfare.

High performance computing is a vital component for science and technology research and development. HPCMP promotes the development of the most technologically advanced and affordable military systems and forces. It allows the United States to maintain its technology supremacy in weapons system design by fostering the flow of this technology into warfare support systems. HPCMP programs cover a broad base of capabilities including computing engines, high-speed networks, massive data storage, scientific visualization capability, software tools, education and training, and expertise in computational and computer sciences.

OSC is part of a consortium that includes university, government and industry institutions led by MSU. MSU provides critical computation technology services to the U.S. military to support weapons development, combat support systems, provide electronic surveillance, and a host of other areas. This portion of HPCMP is called Programming Environment and Training (PET).

Other members of the MSU-led consortium include The Ohio State University, University of Texas-Austin, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of Hawaii, Central State University, Computer Sciences Corporation, and Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC).